Elimination diets for cats

We speak of food hypersensitivity when certain food ingredients are not tolerated by the body. The most common adverse reactions in food hypersensitive animals are pruritus, vomiting and diarrhoea. Solely an ear inflammation or a combination of skin and intestinal problems are also symptoms regularly seen in animals with food hypersensitivity.

The assessment of food hypersensitivity is done by using a so-called elimination diet. This is a diet based on just one carbohydrate source (such as boiled white rice or potato) and one (animal) protein source, which are not used in regular pet food. Examples of protein sources are: horse, venison and rabbit. The purpose of an elimination diet is to assess if your cat truly has food hypersensitivity. The symptoms of food allergy overlap with symptoms of other diseases, like flea allergy or grass pollen allergy. An elimination diet also makes it possible to assess which dietary component causes the adverse reaction and can help to keep your cat free of symptoms.

When providing an elimination diet, the preference goes to a self-prepared diet. When preparing the diet yourself, you know exactly what you are feeding your cat. Self-prepared diets are completely free of preservatives and colour, odour and palatability enhancers, which may cause a hypersensitivity reaction. The absence of these substances increases the chance of success.

TROVET Unique Protein

The tackling of potential food hypersensitivity in cats is a process that TROVET made easier for you. Unique Protein is wet food, consisting of pure meat, supplemented with olive oil and sunflower oil. These products are available in the unique variants: lamb, rabbit, venison, turkey and horse. Unique Protein is free of added carbohydrates, antioxidants and colour, flavour, and palatability enhancers.

Unique Protein is a ready-made product. To prepare an elimination diet, you only have to add a carbohydrate source and a vitamin and mineral source. The preferred carbohydrate sources are boiled white rice or potato. The dietary supplement to prevent any vitamin and mineral deficiencies is TROVET Balance.